Hangman's Hymn - Musikalische Exequien

Sigh have always been an enigmatic figure in the metal world. Their penchant for off-the-wall antics and seemingly random genre fusions have often confused many fans for years, but has also been what made them endearing. Sigh exemplifies the willingness to try new things and forge one's own path. While previous Sigh albums had their ups and downs, "Hangman's Hymn" does absolutely everything right. After the vocal change on the previous epic "Gallow's Gallery," Sigh return to their roots (or as close as one can label a return to roots for Sigh) a bit with the return of blackened vocals and much, much more aggression. There is no filler on this album, no completely out of place moments, and no eccentricity for the sake of eccentricity. Songs are short, to the point, and uniformly amazing.

Starting right off the bat by kicking you in the face, as any good black/thrash album should, Sigh show right away that they're not fucking around anymore. Mirai's harsh rasps are back in full force, and are perhaps at their most vicious since "Scorn Defeat." The riffs and solos are absolutely killer and all over the place. The guitars meld classic thrash and modern black metal seamlessly, with some good old fashioned heavy metal solos being the icing on the cake. Mirai's description of this album as "German thrash with symphonies" is spot on. The classical elements are vital parts of every song, not mere interludes or intros. Each and every song on this album is amazing in every way, whether it be the pummeling delivered by the first trio of tracks or the doomier plod of the final trilogy. The choral vocals used to break up the 3 distinct acts are are nice touch as well.

The lyrics to this album are brilliant, and worth visiting over and over again. The appearance Mirai's demented laughter throughout the album only enhances the impact of the lyrics; I wish more concept albums could be this well-written and intense. It's also nice to be able to distinguish between the multiple voices that are speaking to one another within the songs....witness "Introitus/Kyrie" for an early and obvious example of this.

Production is quite good, which is a definite improvement over the strangely poor mixing of "Gallow's Gallery." Occasionally the guitars could be brought to the forefront a little more, but this is a minor gripe. Drums are loud and clear, vocals are filled with venom, and the symphonic elements are never too overblown. You won't find production better than this on many other black/thrash albums, that's for damn sure.

If you've never heard Sigh, this is the best introduction one could get. It has everything that makes Sigh great: great guitar work, amazing lyrics, and an originality that is sorely lacking in many bands of today. Sigh are easily one of the best black metal bands today. Buy, buy, buy.